The area around him was utterly desolate. Li Mu Chuan first checked his own condition.
The gas mask was no longer on him, and the guards on his legs were gone as well. Fortunately, the soft armor he wore was still there.
Perhaps because the soft armor looked completely like ordinary clothing, Li Mu Chuan had successfully kept it on.
Li Mu Chuan looked around, then started walking forward.
No matter what, it would be better to figure out where this place was first.
A moment later, when Li Mu Chuan heard the roar of an engine, he immediately sighed in relief.
From the sound of it, this should be modern society.
Compared to the alternatives, Li Mu Chuan preferred modern society.
If he had traveled to ancient times, dressed like this with short hair and no travel permit, he would definitely be arrested.
After walking for several dozen minutes, Li Mu Chuan saw a concrete road.
Li Mu Chuan followed the road forward, but there was still no sign of anyone nearby.
After walking for around three minutes, Li Mu Chuan heard the roar of an engine behind him, and his heart leaped with joy.
But when Li Mu Chuan turned to look behind him, he froze.
A hovering car was rapidly flying toward him.
Its shell was sleek and streamlined, while the front windshield was nearly as large as the entire body of the car.
However, the glass was not transparent. Only the section directly in front of the driver was clear.
Li Mu Chuan guessed that the glass could probably have its transparency adjusted at will. Earth already possessed that kind of technology.
The driver had probably seen Li Mu Chuan, and the car slowed considerably.
However, it did not stop directly and instead flew past him at high speed.
After traveling a hundred meters, though, the car slowly pulled over and stopped.
Seeing this, Li Mu Chuan quickly walked over.
"How did you end up alone in a place like this?"
When Li Mu Chuan approached, the other man did not open the car door immediately, instead questioning him through it.
Only then did Li Mu Chuan get a clear look at the man's face. He was middle-aged.
He had somewhat long hair tied up in a style like Yasuo's broom head.
"I came out to have fun with some friends, and they left me here..."
Li Mu Chuan answered vaguely.
The middle-aged man's expression immediately turned sympathetic. "Show me the Identity Chip on your wrist."
Identity Chip?
Li Mu Chuan's heart tightened. Where was he supposed to get one of those? "It's in my friend's car..." With no other choice, Li Mu Chuan could only continue lying.
"Then your friend is really a piece of work."
The middle-aged man sighed, looking Li Mu Chuan up and down. He found him fairly agreeable, so he opened the car door.
"Get in."
Li Mu Chuan was overjoyed when he heard that and hurriedly thanked him.
After getting into the car, he could not help carefully examining its interior layout.
Fortunately, the door closed automatically after Li Mu Chuan got in. Otherwise, he probably would not even have known how to close it.
The seats were somewhat like sofas. As soon as Li Mu Chuan sat down, a small screen rose beside him.
The screen displayed numerous options. Looking carefully, he saw functions for adjusting the temperature, seat comfort, watching movies, and much more.
It seemed easy enough to understand, but Li Mu Chuan did not dare fiddle with it. He felt a strange mix of emotions.
Li Mu Chuan had imagined more than once what the future might look like. Now, he had truly arrived in the future.
Under these circumstances, Li Mu Chuan felt quite exhilarated.
"Um, my friend took my Identity Chip. Where can I get a replacement?"
Li Mu Chuan cautiously opened the conversation, hoping to learn more about what this world was like.
"Of course, you go to the Citizen Center to replace it, but you'll need to bring all the required documents."
The middle-aged man answered as though it were obvious.
Li Mu Chuan felt uneasy upon hearing that. What documents did he have? He was practically an illegal immigrant.
"Ah, not having an Identity Chip really is troublesome," Li Mu Chuan said, following along with the topic.
The middle-aged man did not suspect anything. "Isn't it? Without an Identity Chip, you can't do anything. Paying for meals, taking public buses, and so on all require that thing."
The man was quite talkative, and Li Mu Chuan was happy to keep chatting with him.
But the longer they talked, the more alarmed Li Mu Chuan became.
In this era, Identity Chips encompassed far too much. Payments were made directly through the chip, and even traveling required identity verification.
The Identity Chip was linked to many of a person's accounts and account numbers.
Without a chip, one would be unable to get anywhere.
This was bad. Why did this world seem even harder to survive in than ancient times?
The joy of first arriving in the Future World vanished completely at that moment, leaving behind only unease and anxiety.
When skyscrapers gradually appeared in the distance, that anxious feeling became even more pronounced.
"What happens if someone doesn't have an Identity Chip?"
"You mean illegal immigrants? They're directly deported, of course!" the man replied matter-of-factly.
"With our country's current standard of living, there are a great many illegal immigrants coming here. Who knows how many cases there are every year."
As he spoke, the man seemed somewhat displeased. "Especially those black-skinned ones. After coming to our country, they're incredibly lazy and freeloading. The management of this issue is sometimes far too lax."
Hearing this, Li Mu Chuan said casually, "Those black-skinned illegal immigrants are easier to identify, but Asians would still be harder to spot."
"There's no difference. As long as they're discovered to be illegal immigrants, they'll be deported."
The man replied.
By then, they had entered the city. The exteriors of the surrounding high-rises were all made of glass, though they did not reflect light. Many buildings had 3D advertisements playing across their glass facades.
Advertisements for all kinds of medicine, cars, food, and more.
Li Mu Chuan was dazzled by the sight, yet he could not remember a single thing from the advertisements.
"Where do you want to get off?"
The man asked.
Li Mu Chuan was somewhat at a loss. He did not know where to get off, nor did he know where to go.
Fortunately, Li Mu Chuan had once traveled alone to an unfamiliar city before. After adjusting his mindset, he asked the man to let him off by the roadside.
At that moment, cars sped through the city on both sides of him. When some flew past, long streams of light trailed behind them, looking incomparably cool.
The car stopped by the roadside, then slowly descended.
The door opened. Li Mu Chuan tactfully got out, thanked the man once more, and watched him depart.
Only then did Li Mu Chuan realize that all the cars flew at a height of two meters, while the area below two meters seemed to be designated for pedestrians.
There were separately planned areas along the roadside, which were probably pickup and drop-off zones, such as the spot where Li Mu Chuan was currently standing.
Looking at the countdown, he still needed to stay in this world for five days.
No matter what, his own country was still very safe, even compared with foreign countries. It was not as dangerous as overseas.
That eased Li Mu Chuan's mind somewhat.